Royal Commission for AlUla Announces Discovery of Over 200,000-Year-Old Hand Axe

RCU announced that the archeological excavation teams at the Qurh site in AlUla have found a hand axe dating back to the Paleolithic Age. SPA
RCU announced that the archeological excavation teams at the Qurh site in AlUla have found a hand axe dating back to the Paleolithic Age. SPA
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Royal Commission for AlUla Announces Discovery of Over 200,000-Year-Old Hand Axe

RCU announced that the archeological excavation teams at the Qurh site in AlUla have found a hand axe dating back to the Paleolithic Age. SPA
RCU announced that the archeological excavation teams at the Qurh site in AlUla have found a hand axe dating back to the Paleolithic Age. SPA

Saudi Arabia’s Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) has announced that the archeological excavation teams at the Qurh site in AlUla Governorate have found a hand axe dating back to the Paleolithic Age, estimated to be more than 200,000 years old.
It is a strong tool, made of soft basalt stone 51.3 cm long, that could have been used for cutting or chopping. Studies are still conducted to identify the purpose of its use.
Qurh is one of the historical sites that have gained prominence in the early Islamic periods. It was one of the most important urban sites in the Arabian Peninsula, rich with secrets and historical and archeological treasures.
The ancient tool was discovered by a team of archeologists from the heritage consultancy TEOS Heritage, which is exploring the area around Qurh, south of AlUla, looking for evidence of man's existence in ancient times. The team has found several archeological discoveries dating back to the early Islamic period, but this new discovery, the hand axe, is considered to mark a new chapter in the history of humanity in and outside the Arabian Peninsula.
RCU is currently overseeing 11 other specialized archeological projects in AlUla and Khyber, all part of its efforts to discover the secrets of ancient times. The commission attaches great importance to archeological discoveries as part of its AlUla comprehensive development plan to become a world-leading destination for natural and cultural heritage.



Mosul’s Renowned Minaret Restored from Ravages of ISIS

A view of the Al-Hadba Minaret in the Great Mosque of al-Nuri, which was rebuilt after it was blown up by ISIS militants, in Mosul, Iraq, February 5, 2025. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily/File Photo
A view of the Al-Hadba Minaret in the Great Mosque of al-Nuri, which was rebuilt after it was blown up by ISIS militants, in Mosul, Iraq, February 5, 2025. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily/File Photo
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Mosul’s Renowned Minaret Restored from Ravages of ISIS

A view of the Al-Hadba Minaret in the Great Mosque of al-Nuri, which was rebuilt after it was blown up by ISIS militants, in Mosul, Iraq, February 5, 2025. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily/File Photo
A view of the Al-Hadba Minaret in the Great Mosque of al-Nuri, which was rebuilt after it was blown up by ISIS militants, in Mosul, Iraq, February 5, 2025. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousily/File Photo

Mosul’s Grand al-Nuri Mosque, known for its eight-century-old leaning minaret, destroyed by ISIS militants in 2017, has been renovated in a boost for Iraq's second city as it rebuilds after long years of war.

From the pulpit of this medieval mosque on July 4, 2014, ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared a self-styled ‘caliphate’ spanning parts of Syria and Iraq.

Three years later, the ultra hardline group demolished the mosque in the final weeks of a US-backed Iraqi campaign that ousted the militants from Mosul, their de facto capital in Iraq.

Protracted and fierce urban warfare largely reduced the historic landmarks of Iraq's second city to rubble.

Mahmoud Thannon, 70, a tailor who lives near the mosque and runs a tailor shop overlooking the mosque’s minaret, said his two sons were killed before the al-Hadba minaret was demolished.

"When I saw it collapse, I felt even sadder than when I lost my sons," he said. "Watching the Hadba minaret rise again is a joyous day. I feel our pride soaring high as well.”

“My dear martyred sons would be proud to see the minaret rebuilt if they were alive.” said Thannon, speaking inside his shop with images of his two sons hanging behind him.

He broke into tears as he recalled their deaths by shelling in May and June 2017 in the war against ISIS.

Reconstruction and restoration of the mosque and minaret were carried out in partnership with the UN cultural agency UNESCO, the European Union (EU) and the Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage.

UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said over $115 million were mobilized from no less than 15 partners.

“The fact to have it (the minaret) here behind me is like history coming back; is like the identity of this city coming back,” said Azoulay in a speech delivered on February 5 near the mosque to celebrate the completion of the rebuilding work.

The Iraqis called the 150-foot (45-meter) leaning minaret Al-Hadba, or "the hunchback."

The mosque was named after Nuruddin al-Zanki, a noble who fought the early crusaders from a fiefdom that covered territory in modern-day Türkiye, Syria and Iraq. It was built in 1172-73, shortly before his death, and housed an Islamic school.

The Old City's stone buildings, where the mosque is located, date mostly from the medieval period. They include market stalls, a few mosques and churches, and small houses built and rebuilt on top of each other over the ages.